Jamaican Gold Cup star Daley on trial with San Jose

SAN JOSE, Calif. — It might not take long for the San Jose Earthquakes to spend some of the allocation money they picked up Monday from D.C. United in exchange for defender Brandon McDonald.

The Quakes have brought in Jamaican international Omar Daley — who scored in the Reggae Boyz’s 4-0 win against Grenada in their Gold Cup opener — for a quick two-day trial, which ends Friday.

“I’ve seen him in the Gold Cup and he did pretty well for Jamaica, so we’ll just have a look at him, see how we’re getting on,” said Quakes coach Frank Yallop, whose club has filed a discovery tag on Daley.

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Daley, 30, is coming off of four years spent with Bradford City of England’s League Two, or fourth tier. The intriguing aspect for the Quakes is clearly Daley’s experience playing on the wing, which is where he’s primarily been used by several English clubs since first leaving Jamaica in 2003 for a year-long loan at Reading.

“I just got a phone call that they wanted to see me for a couple of days, and I’m delighted for the opportunity to come and train with the boys,” Daley said. “We’ll see what happens the next couple of days.”

Right midfield has seen a bevy of Quakes come and go in recent weeks, so finding a more permanent solution is certainly on the list of things Yallop and general manager John Doyle will look at doing when the summer transfer window opens July 15.

Although the Quakes are 5-5-5 through 15 matches, neither Yallop nor Doyle is willing to grant the premise that San Jose need help to earn a spot in this year’s MLS Cup playoffs.

“We’ve got a solid group,” Yallop said. “If we can add someone who’s really good and going to make a difference, we’d do that, for sure. But it’s not easy, and we don’t want to go out and waste the money we just got.”

If an agreement is reached, Daley would join countrymen Ryan Johnson and Khari Stephenson in San Jose’s attack. Stephenson, for one, feels Daley could solve the riddle that has been right wing for the Quakes.

“Definitely,” Stephenson told MLSsoccer.com. “I think he would fit in. … He’s quick, he’s good at taking on players and he can whip in a nice cross. And he also has a good shot. Those are the qualities he has, and if that’s what the coaches need, then he’s there for them.”

Geoff Lepper covers the Earthquakes for MLSsoccer.com. He can be reached at sanjosequakes@gmail.com. On Twitter: @sjquakes